Boots and Coates Pan Fried Chicken in Kansas City

Boots and Coates Pan Fried Chicken in Kansas City

Hello All,

I'm new to this site and I think it's awesome. I came across the Kansas City fried chicken topic and noticed there were a few folks who mentioned Boots and Coates as a place in KC that did fried chicken up right.

Oddly enough, my uncle was Boots brother and I used to go in there quite a lot as a kid. Any time I would fake being sick as a kid, my Aunt would come pick me ups since my folks worked and take me on her errands for the day which typically included a bowling league at Ward Parkway Lanes and a follow up trip to see family at the Boots and Coates.

Anyway, I talked to my Aunt today and "Chicken Betty" (the head chef who originally came from Strouds) has passed away. My Aunt wasn't sure what she did immediately after B&C closed but that my unlce's brother was fortunate enough to get the recipe before she passed.......that said, my Aunt doesn't know it although I asked her to check.

B&C decided to close its doors when they were offered a lot of money for the land. I guess the purchaser of the land was the guy who owned Van Chevrolet, hence the reason for all the car lots there now.

Boots is 87 now and still lives in south KC.

I'm not sure that this post deserved it's own topic but I thought since there were a few folks asking about it I would start one so the reply wouldn't be buried.

My Aunt was pleased to hear that people still mention it and was going to call Boots to let him know.

Bootes % Coates was one of the best joints around KC, an Chicken Betty Lucas was the reason why. You could go into a joint that she had worked in three years prior, and still identify her unique twist in the subject. If there is a cooking hall of fame, Betty Lucas deserves to be enshrined.

Bootes % Coates was one of the best joints around KC, an Chicken Betty Lucas was the reason why. You could go into a joint that she had worked in three years prior, and still identify her unique twist in the subject. If there is a cooking hall of fame, Betty Lucas deserves to be enshrined.

I will be passing posts like this along to my Aunt to pass on to Boots. She told me he really missed being there day to day but they were given an offer that he couldn't refuse.....not in a Godfather kind of way of course.

When I was a kid almost every Friday night was spent at Boots and Coats. My folks would meet up with all of their friends and I would be given handfuls of change for the jukebox. Between Mr. Boots and Mr. Coats, I ended up on sugar highs from Shirley Temples like no others! One of my favorite nights was meeting Len Dawson and getting to sit on his lap at the bar. Somehow I am pretty sure that would never happen today! If memory serves, Mr. Boots also belonged to Hillcrest County Club along with my folks and their friends. It was such a sad day to hear of Chicken Betty's passing.

i think Betty went to RC's in martin city for awhile. they still claim thier chiken as chiken bettys reciepe. And i also remember b&c very well. grew up very close to there. old thread here but nice to get it going again.

We were out with friends last night and were talking about KC restaurants that are long gone. Boots & Coates came up. The fried chickem was the best. Do you remember the Drumstick on State Line? They had great wings. Any way, I digress. We could not agree if the retaurant was on the north or south side of 103rd St. Can you tells us the correct answer? Thanks, Spencer

I just made this for dinner tonight! This was so easy to make. The most time consuming part is slicing the onion / removing fat from the chicken (although I really didn't need to do the latter...). Use the best quality balsamic you can find - and afford (it REALLY does make a difference). Next time, I'll use a better quality balsamic (the dish was a tad tangy, but I like tart, so it wasn't an issue for me), mix the balsamic, tomatoes & spices together BEFORE adding to the skillet (the spices tend to clump together otherwise) and add fresh minced garlic to the skillet as the breasts simmer (in lieu of the garlic salt called for). This dish goes particularly well with garlic mashed potatoes and green beans, although, I think I'll try it with seasoned rice (i.e. chicken flavor) & steamed asparagus or broccoli next time to change things up a bit.